2022.09.11 Teach Us To Pray - Forgive As I Say Not As I Do
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Teach Us To Pray - Forgive As I Say Not As I Do
Teach Us To Pray - Forgive As I Say Not As I Do
Matthew 6:5-13 • Matthew 18:23-35
When I was a child, there was a phrase that was quite popular among parents. I don’t think it was a new phrase to the 1970s or 1980s, so you likely are familiar with the phrase, too. Psychology has taught us that a child is likely to repeat the behavior of one or both of their parents as they grow and establish their own life choices. But no parent is perfect, right?
I know there are parts about me that I hope and pray don’t get handed down to Isaiah or Hannah! And my parents had similar choices and habits that they hoped didn’t pass down to us.
So, when my older brother started smoking, my parents were very hard on him. Can we agree, though, that it’s hard to hold that line when you’re a smoker? My brother, as rebellious teenagers are wont to do, threw my parent’s multiple-pack-a-day habit in their face when they tried to correct his smoking. And you can likely predict the phrase that came out of my parent’s mouths, right? Do as I say, not as I do.
Today, as we continue working through the Lord’s Prayer, our phrase is:
12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Our God knows us so well. Jesus knows that we are likely to shake a finger in someone else’s face for all of the heinous sins they’ve committed, while in the same breath asking him to forgive us of our minor infractions. That’s true isn’t it?
We want conviction, we want condemnation, we want the BOOK thrown at those who’ve wronged us! But we celebrate the grace of our loving God who forgives us when there is no reason for him to do so other than his love for us.
I’ve said before, “On Sunday mornings, most churches want a good hard sermon preached at someone else.”
[pause]
But that’s not how God operates, is it?
12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
God puts this on its head! As we hold onto our grudges and hard feelings toward others, we ask God to forgive us. We’re effectively instructing the Lord of the Universe: "Do as I say, not as I do.”
But God is God. As He so often does, he turns this approach on its ear. He doesn’t seem indignant that peons like us should tell him what to do. He doesn’t point out our own hypocrisy. He doesn’t chastise us for having perfectly human feelings.
Instead, he educates us. In this simple, model prayer, Jesus teaches us how our God operates. He tells us to pray in such a way that acknowledges that our forgiveness is tied to our willingness to forgive others … because it’s true.
And then he doubles down on it:
14 “For if you forgive other people for their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
Later in his teaching years, Jesus teaches the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant, which was our other reading today. When the master finds out the bondservant whose debt he forgave is exacting revenge on a fellow servant who owes him money, the master calls the debt due, and has him tortured until he can repay every penny he owes. Before we get to Jesus’ punchline, I want to point out, the debt this master is calling due was already forgiven! This parable was not a message to the worldly bunch who weren’t following Jesus. This was a message to the ‘already forgiven’ crowd listening to Jesus.
When the servant showed a lack of forgiveness to his fellow servant, the master REINSTITUTES THE DEBT the servant hadn’t paid … and then called it due.
And at the end of the parable, I can see Jesus calmly and quietly concluding the parable:
35 My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart.”
Friends, as the inferior in this God-human covenant, we are not in a position to make demands or ‘teach’ God how he should act.
Rather, He instructs us how he WILL act. If you have been forgiven and you refuse to forgive other, He will reinstate your debt and send you to the torturer until you pay your debt to him. If you know anything about the Scriptures, you likely understand that debt is not a debt you or I could ever pay!
(NO SLIDE) The Wesleyan Bible Commentary says of this passage:
The Wesleyan Bible Commentary, Volume 4: Matthew–Acts (d. Law of Forgiveness (18:21–35))
The lesson of this parable is too obvious to call for much comment. Every believer has been forgiven a mammoth debt of sin which he could never repay. Yet some professing Christians refuse to forgive a fellow Christian for some petty, imagined wrong—a passing remark or an impatient word, sometimes even something said in fun. Grudges are harbored for years. It should be said once and for all than an unforgiving spirit is utterly unchristian.
Teach Us To Pray - Forgive As I Say Not As I Do
Teach Us To Pray - Forgive As I Say Not As I Do
As we shift our attention to the Lord’s Table today, let me ask plainly:
Who do you need to forgive? What infraction do you need to let go of … so God is willing to let go of yours?
This Supper is a meal all about forgiveness. We come to this table in desperate need of God’s grace. As we share together around the bread and juice, God shakes us up with his mercy and his grace and we have opportunity to walk away forgiven. But if you’re holding onto a grudge, be forewarned. Recognize that our God CAN do anything. He is PERFECTLY CAPABLE of forgiving in spite of your obstinate, hard heartedness. But He WON’T!
Don’t hold out hope for something he says he will not do. He will hold onto your offenses the same way you hold onto others’ offenses.
NO SLIDES
Pray this way:
12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
14 “For if you forgive other people for their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
15 But if you do not forgive other people, then your Father will not forgive your offenses.
